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"This is the worst news I could give you..." said the doctor to Leslie Bauer after doing a cat scan in the emergency room. "You have a 3.5 centimeter brain tumor ."
Just 2 days prior our HMO doctor at Bristol Park Medical Group told her that she was fine and it was just stress. Several times in the year prior her doctors told her she had a sinus infection and gave her antibiotics.
Many people are aware of breast cancer and have heard generaly about lung cancer. But few know of Small Cell Lung Cancer which is incurable if not stopped early and kills thousands yearly. Fewer yet know that this cancer will usually move through the blood stream to the brain where it will form cancer brain tumors. Lung cancer kills 170,000 Americans yearly - much more than any terrorist.
Lung cancer causes more cancer-related deaths in the world than any other cancer. In the United States lung cancer claims more lives every year than colon cancer, prostate cancer, and breast cancer combined..
If you catch SCLC early before it spreads to other organs you have a much better chance of longer survival. If you catch it after it travels to other parts of the body, such as the brain where it will create brain tumors, you currently have little or no chance for survival. Your doctors will talk in general terms, such as "quality of life," but unless you ask them point blank they will avoid talking about your survival chances. Many oncologist will avoid giving you a direct prognosis until it is too late.
Leslie, on the right, had huge headaches for months. The doctors just gave her antibiotics, thinking that it was a sinus infection. They totally missed TWO big cancers, one was a brain tumor and the other a tumor in her lung.. Once the tumors were discovered she went through chemo and through whole brain radiation which totally destroyed her quality of life.
Our goal is to reduce the incidents of small cell lung cancer by educating potential at-risk populations, by funding specific research that will target this terrible killing terrorist within and to help individuals with small cell lung cancer. And it is our hope that we can help kill cancer.
I am Leslie's husband who lost the love of his life. Want to make sure it does not happen to you.
Zigmund Sepanski
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In memory of Leslie Bauer Sepanski (Szczepanski) who died May 18, 2008 of small cell lung/brain cancer. Doctors at Bristol Park Medical Group told her several times she was fine when in reality she had a 3.5 centimeter tumor in her brain and a similar one in her lungs. More Leslie photos.
LUNG CANCER NEWS
12/27/08 Lung disease drug study
11/20/08 Lung Cancer pill vs chemo
10/16/08 Lung Cancer Podcast**:
MP3 version - Real Player version
9/15/08 Phony Cancer cures
7/15/08 Cancer bill before senate
6/17/08 Men vs women smokers
6/3/08 Inoperative tumors zapped
6/1/08 Drug adds 5 weeks of life
6/3/ 08 Test spots early cancer
5/10/08 Gene may point to cancer risk
5/8/08 High dose chemo fails in SCLC
**Progress in the Treatment of Lung Cancer: Report from the 2008 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting
PRESENTED BY:
- Rogerio C. Lilenbaum
- MD, Director, Thoracic Oncology Program, The Mount Sinai Comprehensive Cancer Center, Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine, University of Miami School of Medicine
- Winfield A. Boerckel
- MSW, MBA, Live Strong and National Relations Program Director, Lung Cancer Program Coordinator, CancerCare
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH:
American Cancer Society
American Pain Foundation
American Society of Clinical Oncology
Association of Clinicians for the Underserved
Association of Oncology Social Work
Black Women's Health Imperative
Cancer Patient Education Network
Education Network to Advance Cancer Clinical Trials
Gilda's Club Worldwide
The above program is supported by a charitable contribution from Bristol-Myers Squibb.
Intercultural Cancer Council
Lung Cancer Alliance
LungCancer.org
Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer
National Center for Frontier Communities
National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship
National Lung Cancer Partnership
Research Advocacy Network
The Wellness Community
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